Quality Matters: What Is It?What is Quality Matters The Quality Matters (QM) is a faculty-centered, peer review-based, consortium wide process to certify the quality of online courses and online components. To characterize quality, QM first turned to the research literature and national standards. The project identified 40 elements, distributed across eight broad standards, shown to positively impact student learning. These elements were then incorporated into a web-based rubric and weighted from 1 (important) to 3 (essential). Annotations and multiple examples from real online courses have been provided for each essential element. Among the national standards included are those of the Sloan Consortium, one of QM’s external partners.
A team of three faculty members is trained to use the rubric in reviewing an online course. The reviewers include one content expert and at least one member from an institution other than the course’s home institution. Review team members work both individually and collaboratively, and in communication with the course’s faculty member, to provide a compiled report that highlights exceptional elements and provides positive recommendations for improving the course. The QM project then provides instructional design support for implementing the review team’s recommendations. At the completion of the review and revision process, a course receives Quality Matters Recognition. To receive QM Recognition, a course must demonstrate all 3-point essential review elements and receive a total score of 68 out of 80 possible points.
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